Chicken Taquitos with Cilantro Cream Sauce

Rice, beans, and meat was always the typical meal in my home growing up. We were a typical Puerto Rican home and our food was heavily influenced by that. The restaurants around our neighborhood consisted of Puerto Rican/Dominican cuchifrito, Chinese, local pizza shop, and typical fast food places. Our little borough wasn’t really exposed to other Latin or Central American foods. That all changed when I met my husband who is from Nicaragua. You would think because we’re both Latinos that our foods would be similar but they are actually quite different. There was one recipe that I fell in love with – Taquitos. You will love these Chicken Taquitos with Cilantro Cream Sauce!

Taquitos are crispy, crunchy, and just plain delicious. I never tasted Taquitos until my husband made them for me one day. To say that I was seriously missing out all my life was an understatement. I felt deprived. No, seriously. I thought I lived in a diverse city but there was so much more out there – so much food and culture that I was never exposed to. New York City is crowded with so many different cultures but I still felt very small whenever I ventured out into the city. My husband lived in Brooklyn and me, the Bronx.

We are the typical millennial couple, we met online. Shocker, right? Before all those dating apps, there was MiGente. Does anyone remember that website?

We fell in love pretty quickly and 10+ years later we’re still together. My little Nica boy introduced me to the world of Carne Asada and Gallo Pinto. Oh, and of course, taquitos!

I hope that you enjoy this recipe as much as I did when I first tasted them. Taquitos are perfect for parties and get-togethers. Taquitos are done differently by everyone but this is how I’ve made them based on my husband’s recipe.

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Chicken Taquitos Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 pack of boneless chicken breast (I used 5 thin sliced chicken breast)
• 2 bell peppers (I used green but you can use red as well)
• 1 large onion
• 1/4 cup Ketchup
• 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 1 TBS Mustard
• 1 TSP crushed garlic
• 2 TBS of olive oil
• salt, to taste
• pepper, to taste
• Corn tortilla (flour would work too)
• Toothpicks (optional)
• Frying oil (optional)

Cilantro Cream Sauce:

• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 cup diced cilantro
• 1 TSP crushed garlic
• salt, to taste
• pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Bring 4-5 cups of water to a boil, add 1 diced Bell pepper (cut into chunky pieces), add half of the onion. Next, add your chicken. Season water with about 1 TSP of salt. Let the chicken cook through until no longer pink. About 20-25 mins.
2. Remove the chicken from the pot, let it cool a bit then shred with a fork. Reserve some of the water mixture.
3. In a frying pan, heat olive oil. Next, add diced Bell Pepper and the remaining half of the onions. Add chicken and mix in onions and bell peppers. Next, add ketchup, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, salt, and pepper. Mix well. Add 1 TBS of the reserved water. Mix well. Transfer to a bowl.
4. Heat up the tortillas for 15-20 seconds in the microwave or clean skillet.
5. Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees (if baking).
6. Add about 2 TBS of chicken on the warm tortilla and roll tightly. You can add a toothpick to hold it together or just lay it seam down on the baking tray (if you are baking them instead of frying).
7. Lay all the prepared taquitos on a baking tray and brush olive oil on top of each taquito to crisp the tortilla. Put them in the oven for 12-15 minutes turning them halfway to crisp on both sides.
8. Remove from the oven once done and eat immediately for the best crispy taste!

Cilantro Cream Sauce Directions:

1. Mix all the ingredients in a food processor until well blended. Serve with taquitos or drizzle on top.

The recipe takes some work but it is well worth it. If you want to save some time, use already cooked Rotisserie chicken from the supermarket and shred it. All you’ll have to do is season it. I like to make a nice big batch of these and freeze some of them for later use. They come out just as delicious once I defrost them.

Saving time is a big deal for me especially when it comes to cooking! My kids love when I make these. I like to switch it up sometimes and add cheese. I’ve also done it with ground beef and steak! They all taste amazing. You can also experiment with different dipping sauces. I love me some plain sour cream.

Have you ever tasted/made Taquitos?